Monthly Archives: December 2014

It’s the Sunday afternoon after Christmas and I’m alone today, so I decided to do something dramatically ridiculous and delicious, just for myself, by myself, on this last Sunday of Anno Domini 2014. Figured I may as well be naughty doing it, and I wanted to reward myself for recently losing a lot of weight through disciplined eating habits. And, why not make it Indo-American fusion?

I have never done crack but I have heard that it’s addictive. So, I wanted to make something so nasty tasty that it would get even a crack addict off crack, and addicted to this new dish instead. I wanted the dish I was planning to make to at once be so novel, stupid, unhealthy, and over the top for this special occasion. The type of dish that makes women swoon, and men drool, in an endless but cool loop of swoon and drool, in just the right serving sizes. But above all, it would have to taste so good that it would clearly be seen as an instant classic, a once-a-year type of treat. Ladies and gentlemen, I propose to you, Food Porn Pasta Sauce- creamy variety. Read the rest of this entry →

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One of the stunning demographic statistics of today is this: 65% of India’s massive population is 35 (my age) or younger. This has some profound ramifications for the rest of the world, especially aging Western nations and their companies. Having an India strategy will be increasingly critical for fast food chains, the fashion sector, Hollywood, candy companies, toiletry makers, and so much more. We are not far from the day where India will be the #1 market in the world by volume for Facebook, Pepsi, Domino’s Pizza, Marlboro, Apple, Xbox, Unilever, etc. Once this happens the phenomenon would probably last for decades considering China is more populated but also more closed, with an older population.

Beyond that, we may start to see India retain its position as the #1 market for entire industries for decades on end. As a result of the demographic and cultural trends, we may even one day get to the point where India is where “cool” comes from, exported to the rest of the world. India’s rich youth culture may end up starting trends for youth in other parts of the world. Social media and the Internet will help make this happen.

That being said, we are still a ways from that day. Till then, we will have to settle for laughing at Indian youth, such as in this hilarious video of pickup lines captured on camera in India by Awkwardness Unlimited. What made me laugh out loud was, sadly, the accents and mannerisms.

Indian fashion absolutely demolishes anything that the Western houses of design manage to stitch together. It’s hard to blame the Western world. Indians have been wearing various iterations of gorgeous and colorful saris and kurthas for thousands of years now with style. The contrast is even starker in men’s wear. Small wonder then that in the […]

Periodically in American life, prominent tragedies such as the violent deaths of African-Americans like Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, or Eric Garner cause a firestorm of international media attention and bring America’s truths about race relations to the forefront for all to see in its naked ugliness. It reminds us that racism is alive. These events, along with the response of the judicial system, the protests, and the rioting that follow show that many tensions are simmering constantly below the surface, and can easily boil over once that single match lights this powder keg of race relations that is the United States of America even in the year 2014.

Indian-Americans like myself have a front row seat to all of it, but we are still on the sidelines, and we largely come from a very different world. Famously, some of us are either “black-identified” or “white-identified,” more likely the latter, which means siding more with one race or the other due to cultural, political, or identity affinity, often a product of where one grew up. I am non-aligned on this journey: I truck with both races, have a deep connection with both, and do not side with either. I am just as comfortable in a group of all whites or all blacks as I am with a group of Indians (ironically sometimes more so, LOL). I believe this gives me the credibility to be a uniquely neutral commentator on the black-white condition. Read the rest of this entry →